Tuesday, February 13, 2018 7:05PM - NHL

21 Chicago Blackhawks

vs.

22 Vegas Golden Knights

Date

Sport/Type

Pick

Score

Odds

Size

W/L

$

02/13/2018

NHL Puck Lines

Vegas

5-2

-1½+150

Free

W

Free

Analysis

Who would have thought at the beginning of the season that the Blackhawks would be the patsy here. Las Vegas is in stop-the-pain mode losing two in a row at home. The Golden Knights only had lost two previous games at T-Mobile Arena during their first 23 home contests.

I don't expect the Golden Knights to play poorly at home again after suffering a 4-1 loss to the Flyers two days ago. The Blackhawks have lost six in a row. They hit a season low with a 6-1 road loss to the last-place Coyotes on Monday. Chicago hasn't dropped this many consecutive games since the 2011-12 season.

The Blackhawks have not been able to overcome the loss of star goalie Corey Crawford. Chicago is in serious danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. The Blackhawks have lost their last three games by a combined 10 goals.

This marks Chicago's third road game in four days. The Blackhawks return home following this matchup. That's where they could regroup to make a last stand. The effort has been there for the Blackhawks. They still are trying. They just aren't good anymore. And now they're in a very vulnerable spot to get blown out again, this time by a team much superior to the Coyotes.